Barcelona failed to regain their five-point lead at the top of the La Liga after a 2-1 defeat to Atletico Madrid.
Pep Guardiola's men were second best for long periods against an Atletico side who established a 2-0 lead inside 23 minutes thanks to a clinical Diego Forlan strike and a wonderful free-kick from Simao Sabrosa.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic halved the deficit within four minutes but Atletico deservedly held on to secure an impressive win and do city rivals Real Madrid a huge favour in the title race.
Real, who beat Xerez 3-0 last night, are now just two points behind their Catalan rivals, for whom it was a first league defeat of the season, after 22 rounds.
Sevilla capped a productive week with a 1-0 win against Osasuna which moved them back into the Champions League qualifying spots.
But while it may have been a three-point haul for the Andalusians, it was another wholly unconvincing performance.
Completely outplayed by Getafe in the Copa del Rey semi-final second leg in midweek - Sevilla still progressed despite a 1-0 defeat - Manolo Jimenez's men were again lacking fluency.
But they grabbed the only goal came after 35 minutes courtesy of the prolific Luis Fabiano.
Fernando Soriano struck an injury-time equaliser to salvage a point for Almeria and heap more frustration on Getafe.
It looked like Getafe were going to bounce back from their Copa disappointment with a three-point haul as goals from Javi Casquero and Roberto Soldado saw them leading 2-1 heading into the final minutes.
However, it was not to be as Soriano's 92nd-minute equaliser saved lowly Almeria and continued their decent run under new coach Juan Manuel Lillo, who has now lost just one game in seven since replacing Hugo Sanchez during the winter break.
Espanyol secured a vital 2-0 win at home to high-flying Deportivo La Coruna to move back up to the respectability of mid-table.
Former Deportivo midfielder Joan Verdu set Mauricio Pochettino's men on their way with the all-important opener six minutes before half-time.
And Jose Callejon sealed a precious win for the Barcelona-based side with the second just short of the hour mark.
By then, the Catalans' task had been made all the more easier by the sending-off of Deportivo midfielder Antonio Tomas for an elbow on Javi Chica.
Malaga cruised to a 3-0 win at Racing Santander thanks to goals from Weligton, Felipe Caicedo and Victor Obinna.
Racing's misery was compounded by the late dismissal of striker Mohamed Tchite, who was shown a straight red for gesturing to the referee he needed glasses.
Real Zaragoza produced a battling performance to claim a valuable point against relegation rivals Real Valladolid.
Jose Aurelio Gay's side had won their previous two matches to climb out of the bottom three at Valladolid's expense, but they would have been content with just a point today after they were forced to fight back from a goal down and having been reduced to 10 men following Andre Herrera's 65th-minute dismissal.
Diego Costa had fired Valladolid ahead after 23 minutes before Humberto Suazo got the visitors on level terms six minutes before the break.
On Saturday, Cristiano Ronaldo struck twice on his return from suspension as Real Madrid flourished late in the game to thrash Xerez 3-0.
Real dominated virtually throughout on a stodgy pitch, but had to be patient as Xerez held out for more than an hour.
Alvaro Arbeloa finally put Madrid in front after 64 minutes, before Ronaldo's quick brace finished off the spirited Andalusians.
They will now hope their city rivals Atletico can do them a favour tomorrow night against a Barca side missing a host of defenders through injury and suspension.
Valencia came from behind to secure a point at Sporting Gijon in a 1-1 draw, but were left frustrated by the plucky Asturians.
Sporting put their recent woes behind them as they took a fifth-minute lead through Diego Castro.
And Valencia, despite incessant pressure which saw them twice rattle the woodwork, were unable to find a way through until Juan Mata's leveller 14 minutes from time.
Juan Carlos Garrido celebrated a 2-1 victory in his first home match in charge of Villarreal amid late drama at El Madrigal.
Garrido oversaw a 1-0 defeat at Real Mallorca last week but it was a different story against Athletic Bilbao tonight thanks to first-half goals from Joan Capdevila and Nilmar.
Igor Gabilondo had drawn Athletic level but the goals were only half the story as Andoni Iraola missed a late penalty for the visitors before three players and one coach saw red.
Javi Martinez and Diego Godin both went after a clash and, in the ensuing chaos, both benches got involved and Athletic coach Joaquin Caparros was also sent to the stands.
Frustration then got the better of Pablo Orbaiz, who was dismissed after reacting with fury to what he perceived was an over-reaction to his challenge by Ariel Ibagaza.
Match Reports
Villarreal 2-1 Athletic Bilbao
Espanyol 2-0 Deportivo La Coruna
Sevilla 1-0 Osasuna
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